Department of Neurology, Aarhus University Hospital, Aarhus, Denmark. mona@akhphd.au.dk
The authors investigated whether patients with drug refractory epilepsy have cardiovascular abnormalities that might be related to a high frequency of sudden death. Twenty-three subjects underwent comprehensive cardiovascular evaluations before and during video-EEG monitoring. ST-segment depression occurred in 40% and was associated with a higher maximum heart rate during seizures. These data suggest that cardiac ischemia may occur in these patients.